Igniting device for gases.



Patented lung 19, l900.

A. MARTINI- IGNITING DEVICE FOR GASES.

(Application med Dec. 3, 1898.)

(No Model.)

w: cams PETERS ca, wuoroimiou wumnamn. a c,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ADOLF MARTINI, OF BERLIN, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR TO ANDREW WATSON LUDLOW, OFST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, AND CHESTER B. WEEKS, OF PARIS;

FRANCE.

IGNITING DEVICE FOR GASES;

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 651,875, dated J iin19, 1906. Application filed December 3, 1898. Serial No. 698,205. (Nospecimens.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ADOLF MARTINI, a citizen of the United States ofAmreica, and a resident of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, GermanEmpire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in IgnitingAppa ratus for Gases, (for which I filed applications for patents inGermany October 10, 1898; in Great Britain October 31, 1898, No. 22,901;in Belgium November 3,1898, No. 108, 631, and in France November 3,1898, No. 270,545,) of which the following is a specification.

All ignition=pills prepared by reducing their components by heat or in acurrent of illuminating-gas or hydrogen become in a very short time moreor less useless, as by the reducing process part of their ingredientsare transformed into hygroscopic and fritting materials.

The object of my present invention is a process for forming pills, ofwhich an example is shown in the annexed drawing, containing neitherhygroscopical nor any material able to frit.

To that purpose I proceed as follows: The raw pill is formed byimpregnating any porous non-combustible material-meerschaum, forexample+with salts of metals of the platinum group. Then this pill isexposed to a current of vapors of organic acids, preferably tartaric orformic acid, or instead of the latter ones also derivates of alcohol-as,for example, aldehydes, hydrazines, &c. The pills treated in the waydescribed above will contaili carbonized matter and are porous to a veryhigh degree. These pills are treated for a second time with the solutionof salts of the platinum group hereinbefore mentioned and exposed for asecond time to the current of the mixture of the gases and vaporshereinbefore mentioned. Then they are for a moment brought to a red heatand afterward cleansedw'ith water and diluted organic acids. A currentof illuminating-gas cannot be ignited by such pills alone. Their heatmust be transferred to a wire able to withstand white heat. The quickignition of the gas is attained by employing two or more wires ofdifferent metals. Their meltingpoints must be widely apart. One of themmust withstand white heat, whereas the other one must have a much lowermelting-point. The diameter of this latter must be so chosen that ifbrought into a Bunsen flame it will readily melt; but in combinationwith the platinum wire no melting takes place, as the heat isimmediately transferred to the latter. The explanation of it is asfollows: The ignition-pill,which on account of its composition is heatedtoa red heat only, transfers the greater part of its heat on thesurrounding gases and only a small fraction to the wires of platinum andpalladium; but thisfraction, in combination with the films of gasescondensed on the surface of the wires, is sufficient to cause a rapidelevation of temperature in the wires. The melting-point of thepalladium being about 300 inferior to that of the platinum, it

would soon reach its melting-point if it were 'bility for gases, whichincreases with the heat.

The consequence is that the platinum wires are brought to a very highdegree of temperature by means of the heat transmitted from thepalladium wires, which at last suffices to ignite the jet of gas. Thesewires are slightly tied together, passed through the pill or around it,and secured thereto in any desired way. The end of the wire must in anycase protrude over the pill.

I preferably employ wires of platinum and palladium, the lattertransmittingits heat to the former one.

In the accompanying drawing, a is the porous pill, containing platinumsalts in state of very fine division. Thin wires 12 and c are slungaround and passed through the same and tied together, so that their endsform a sort of brush on the under side of the pill. Two different metalsare employed for said wires, the ones I) being of platinum and the otherones, 0, of palladium. By means of a piece of wire d the thus-preparedpill is suspended from an appropriate holder.

The heat of the glowing pill is transferred to the wires with which itis suspended, and these begin to glow in bright red heat. The jet of gasimpinging on said glowing wires is immediately ignited with a feebleexplosion.

Having now particularly described my invention, What I claim is- Aprocess for manufacturing ignition-pills for gas, consisting in thetreatment of pills, formed by incorporating salts of the platinum groupin any non-combustible, porous material, in vapors of organic acids,derivates of alcohol, then reimpregnating the pills thus obtainedandoontaining carbonized matter with a solution of salts of the platinumgroup and repeating the reduction in the same way I 5 as hereinbeforedescribed, and completing the treatment by cleansing the pills;substantially-as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I afiix'jny signature in presence of two witnesses.'f

ADOLF MARTINI.

Witnesses: I

- HENRY HASPE'R,

L. GoLDsoHMiDT.

